Apparatus for making electrical splices



Nov. 29, 1966 c. w. FRITZ ETAL. 3,287,790

APPARATUS FOR MAKING ELECTRICAL SPLICES Filed May '7, 1965 7Sheets-Sheet l Nov. 29, 1966 c. w. FRITZ ETAL APPARATUS FOR MAKINGELECTRICAL SPLICES 7 Sheets-Sheet :1

Filed May '7, 1965 Nov. 29, 1966 c. w. FRITZ ETAL 3,287,790

APPARATUS FOR MAKING ELECTRICAL SPLICES Filed May 7, 1965 7 Sheets-5heeN 2 1 c. FlTz ETAL 3,287,790

. APPARATUS FOR MAKING ELECTRICAL SPLICES Filed May '7, 1965 '7Sheets-Sheet 4 1966 c. w. FRITZ ETAL 3,287,790

. APPARATUS FOR MAKING ELECTRICAL SPLICES Filed May 7, 1965 '7shee'tS-sheet 5 Nov. 29, 1966 c. w. FRITZ ETAL. 3,287,790

' APPARATUS FOR MAKING ELECTRICAL SPLICES Filed May 7, 1965 7Sheets-Sheet 6 1966 c. w. FRITZ ETAL 3,287,790

APPARATUS FOR MAKING ELECTRICAL SPLICES Filed May 7, 1965 '7Sheets-Sheet 7 as: 112 r W6 IHI: in

United States Patent Filed May '7, 1965, Ser. No. 454,105 Claims. (Cl.2933.5)

This invention relates to devices for making splice connections forelectrical conductors.

The copending application of Richard E. Reem et al., Serial No. 351,024,now abandoned, filed March 10, 1964, for Method and Apparatus for MakingElectrical Connections, discloses and claims an apparatus for splicingconductors in which the ends of the conductors are merely positionedbetween a crimping die and anvil and the die and anvil are moved towardseach other. During crimping of the connector positioned between thedies, the ends of the wires are neatly trimmed and only the trimmed endsof the conductors are contained in the crimped connection. The copendingapplication of William R. Over, Serial No. 426,257, filed January 18,1965, for Crimping Tool, discloses an improved form of crimping devicein accordance with the general teachings of the above-mentioned Reem etal. application.

The present invention relates to a further type of device in accordancewith the general teachings of the Reem et al. application Serial No.351,024 and incorporating a means for feeding a series of spliceconnectors in strip form to position the leading connector of the stripbetween the crimping die and anvil. The present invention isparticularly directed to a semiautomatic splice applicator of a typewhich is adapted to be used to make splices in situ on communicationscables or the like containing a large number of individual conductors.The provision of an automatic strip feeding mechanism, and otherfeatures of the present invention, particularly adapted to use under thecircumstances where a large number of splices are to be made so that anautomatic applicator is preferable to a hand tool, as disclosed in theabove-mentioned Reem et al. and Over applications.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved applicator forapplying splice-type connections to the ends of wires. It is a furtherobject to provide a splice applicator including means for feeding aseries of splice connectors to the crimping zone of the applicator. Itis a further object to provide an applicator which is particularlyadapted for use with communications cables having a large number ofindividual conductors, the applicator including means for automaticallyejecting the individual conductors from the crimping zone after theyhave been spliced.

These and other objects of the invention are achieved in one preferredembodiment thereof comprising a crimping die assembly having atransversely extending slot intermediate its ends and an anvil which ismovable relatively towards and away from the die assembly. Connectors instrip form are fed from one side of the die and anvil assembly andlaterally of the axis thereof to position the leading connector'of thestrip between the die and anvil, provision being made for shearing theleading connector from the strip during each crimping cycle and while itis being crimped onto the ends of wires. The arrangement is such thatthe ends of the wires which are to be spliced are merely positionedbetween the forming surfaces of the die and led from the die assemblythrough the slot. After thus positioning the wires by a splice, theoperator merely actuates an air cylinder which causes the anvil to moverelatively towards the die. During such movement of the anvil, the wirespositioned between the die and anvil are crimped, the leading con-3,287,790 Patented Nov. 29, 1966 nector is severed from the strip, andthe next adjacent connector of the strip is fed to a position betweenthedie and anvil.

In the drawing:

FIGURE 1A is a perspective view of one form of crimped splice connectionwhich is adapted to be formed by the apparatus of the present invention;

FIGURE 1B is a perspective view of a short section of connector strip;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of an apparatus in accordance with theinvention mounted on a supporting frame adjacent to a communicationscable and showing the positions of the parts when the individualconductors of the cable are being spliced;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional side view of the present form of applicatorshowing the relative positions of the parts in the beginning of theoperating cycle;

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FIGURE 3 but showing the positions of theparts after completion of the crimping operation;

FIGURES 5 and 6 are views taken along the lines 55 and 66 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of the reciprocable slideassembly contained in the apparatus of FIGURE 1, parts of the outerhousing of the apparatus 7 being broken away in the interest of clarity;

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary side view of the crimping zone of theapparatus showing the ejector arms by means of which the finishedcrimped connectors are ejected from the crimping zone;

FIGURES 9 and 10 are views similar to FIGURE 8 but showing the positionsof the parts at different stages of the operating cycle;

FIGURE 11 is a view taken along the lines 11-11 of FIGURE 10;

FIGURE 12 is a fragmentary sectional side View showing the shearingmechanism by means of which the carrier strip is fragmented during theoperating cycle;

FIGURE 13 is a view similar to FIGURE 12 but showing the positions ofthe parts at the conclusion of a shearing operation;

FIGURE 14 is a fragmentary perspective view showing a shear blockforming part of the mechanism of FIG- URE 12; and

FIGURE 15 is a perspective view showing the connector strip feedingmeans.

Referring first to FIGURES 1A and 1B, a splice connection 2 of thegeneral type disclosed in the c-opending application of James E. Marleyet al., Serial No. 362,- 057, filed April 22, 1964, for ElectricalConnections, is made by curling the sidewalls 7 of an open U-typeconnector onto the ends of wires 4, 6. The open U-type connector isadvantageously provided with an insulating covering of suitable filmmaterial 9 such as Mylar (polyethylene terephthalate). The Mylarcovering of each connector is connected at its ends to a pair of spacedapart carrier strips 5 which are utilized by the apparatus in accordancewith the present invention to feed the strip towards the crimping zoneas will be explained more fully below.

The applicator 8 in accordance with the invention is mounted adjacent tothe ends 10, 12 of a communications cable containing a multiplicity ofindividual insulated conductors 4, 6. The mounting means for theapplicator 8 comprises a frame 14 having top and bottom rails 22, 26 andside rails 24. Arms 30 extend forwardly from the side rails 24 and haveplates 32 secured to their ends by means of which the frame is clampedto the ends of the cable as shown at 34. In FIGURE 2 of the drawing, thecable 10 is shown as being supported on ledges 17 extending fromvertical support member 16 which are 3 secured to the walls 18 ofmanhole. The frame 14 is suspended from the cable by the clampingmembers 34. It is desirable to provide extendable legs 23 on the lowerrails 26 in order to prevent the frame and applicator from swinging orrotating on the cable.

It should be mentioned at this point that the applicator 8 can besimilarly mounted on communications cables extending between utilitypoles. Under such circumstances, the frame can be clamped either to thecable itself or to the messenger cable which is commonly provided withoverhead utility cables.

A pair of parallel rails 36 extend between the side rails 24 and a pairof plates 33 are mounted on the rails 36. Sleeves 40 extend between theplates, one of these sleeves being provided with .a suitable latchmember 42 to retain the plates 38 and sleeves 40 in a given position ofadjustment. Guide rails 44 extend forwardly from the plates 38, andsleeves 46 are slida-bly mounted on these rails. Clamping screws 50 areprovided in the sleeves 46 in a given position of adjustment. A pair ofears 52 are provided on the sleeves 46 and a pair of parallel rails 54extend upwardly from these ears. Sleeves 56 are slidably mounted on therails 54 and lock-ing screws 58 are provided in the sleeves 56 to securethese sleeves in .a given position of vertical adjustment. Ears 60extend fnom the sleeves 56 and the applicator 8 is mounted on these carsby means of mounting brackets 62 having suitable pins extending throughthe ears. Locking screws 64 are'provi-ded to permit the applicator to beadjusted about an axis extending through the locking pins in the ears62.

It will be apparent that the mounting frame 14 provides for adjustmentof the position of the applicator 8 in accordance with an XYZ coordinatesystem and that, in addition, the applicator can be rotated about itsmounting axis so that its upper end can be moved towards or away fromthe cable in any given position of XY-Z adjustment.

Referring now to FIGURES 2, 3, and 5, the applicator 8 comprises a pairof spaced apart side plates 66, 68 which are maintained in their spacedapart relationship by means of blocks 70, 72, and '73. The block 70 issecured to the opposed faces of the plates and has a slot 74 extendinginwardly from its upper side as viewed in FIGURE 2 within which thewires are positioned when a connector is being crimped onto their ends.A crimpin'g die assembly is mounted on the underside of the block 70 andcomprises three individual pairs of dies 78, 80, 82 one die of each pairbeing mounted on each side of the slot 74. In addition, a pair of stopblocks 84 are mounted on the underside of the block 70 on each side ofthe die assembly. Outwardly of the stop blocks 84 there are providedwire guides .and retainers 86 which may be of any suitable relativelyfirm plastic material and which have slots 88 extending inwardly fromtheir ends through which the wires being spliced are led. Plates 0 aremounted on the upper sides of the die assembly (as viewed in FIGURE 2)on each side of the slot 74, these plates having flanged inner ends 92which provide convergent edges 93 (see FIGURE 7) to guide the wires intothe slots when the operator is preparing to form a splice connection.

The precise structure of the individual crimping dies 78, 80, 82 neednot necessarily be as shown in the drawing, the disclosed type havingopposed convergent sidewalls 94 and parallel sidewalls 96 which arecurved inwardly towards each other to form a cusp. The function of thesesidewalls is to form the sidewalls of the con nector 2 into overlappingrelationship with respect to the conductors being spliced as explainedmore fully in the above-identified Marley et al. application.

Referring now to FIGURES 2, 3, 5, and 7, the various crimping and stripfeeding operations are accomplished by means of a reciprocable slideassembly 98 comprising a pair of spaced apart plates 100 containedbetween the housing plates 66, '68. The plates 100 are maintained intheir spaced apart relationship by means of blocks 102, 104 which extendbetween the opposed faces. A pin 106 extends through the block 102 andbeyond the surface of the plates 100 and through parallel slots 108 inthe housing plates 66, 68. A pin 110 extends through the block 104 inthe lower end thereof as viewed in FIGURE 7 and extends laterallythrough parallel slots 114 in the housing plates 66, 68. Guide rolls 112are provided on the projecting ends of this pin to assist in guiding theslide assembly along a rectilinear path. It should also be noted thatthe block 164 has a central projection which is received within a recess107 in a spacer block 73 which further assists in guiding the slideassembly in its path of reciprocation.

The lower end of the block 104, as viewed in FIGURE 7, is provided :witha central recess 116 through which the pin extends. A link 118 has oneof its ends pivotally mounted on pin 110 in this recess and has itsother end pivoted to a pin 120 which extends between a pair of parallelspaced apart levers 122. The ends of these levers are pivotally mountedon a pin 124 extending between ears 125 integral with the block 73.These levers are pivotally connected at theirother ends. 126 to a pistonrod 128 of a piston-cylinder 130. The rearward end of this cylinder ispivotally mounted on a pin 132 which extends between the housing plates66, 68. It will be apparent from the foregoing that upon upward movementof the piston rod as viewed in FIGURE 2 (i.e. leftward movement asviewed in FIGURES 3 and 4), the slide assembly 98 will be movedrelatively towards the fixed block 70. During such movement of the slideassembly, a shearing arm 136, which extends from block 102, moves intothe lower portion of slot 74 (as viewed in FIGURE 4) and trims the endsof the wires as will be explained more fully below. The piston-cylinderis preferably of the double-acting type in order that it will have thecapability of providing a substantial amount of power on its returnstroke (when the piston rod moves from the position of FIGURE 4 to theposition of FIGURE 3). During the return stroke of this piston rod,power is needed to actuate an ejecting mechanism as is explained morefully below. The piston-cylinder 130 is controlled by means of a valve129 which, in turn, is operated by a control cylinder 131, the pistonrod 133 of which engages the valve 129.

The strip of connectors is advanced during each operating cycle toposition an uncrimped connector on the anvil block by means of areciprocable feed block 138 which extends between the plates 100 andwhich is pivotally mounted on a pin 1 42 extending between a pair ofspaced apart levers 144. The one side of the block 136 is provided witha recess v140 conforming to the external contour of an uncrimpedconnector so that when the block 138 is moved rightwardly from theposition of FIGURE 3 to the position of FIGURE 4, the second connectorfrom the end of the strip will be nested in the recess 140. Uponsubsequent leftward movement of the block, as viewed in FIGURE 4, thefirst uncrimped connector of the strip will be advanced and positionedbetween the anvil block and the die assembly.

The block 138 is normally biased in a clockwise direction with respectto its pivotal axis 142 by means of a spring 146 which extends between apin on the lever 144 and a pin extending from the block. The levers 144are pivotally mounted on a stationary shaft 148 which extends betweenthe plates 100 and have arms 150 extending from their lower ends asviewed in FIGURE 3. These arms are disposed between the sides of thechannel-shaped spacer block 72 so that :when the slide assembly movesupwardly as viewed in FIGURE 3 to the position of FIGURE 4, the levers144 will be swung through a slight clockwise arc to retract the feedblock as previously described. When the parts return to the position ofFIG- URE 3, the levers 144 swing through a correspondingcounterclockwise arc to advance the strip as indicated. In order toprevent the feed block 138 from retracting the connector strip duringmovement of the feed block from the position of FIGURE 3 to the positionof FIG- URE 4, a pair of stops 145 are provided on brackets 152(described immediately below). These stops comprise spring membershaving ears 147 which extend beside the carrier strips 5 and which lodgeagainst the leading connector of the ship as best shown in FIGURE 15.These spring members are cammed upwardly during the feeding stroke ofthe feed block to permit movement of the strip in the feeding direction.

The carrier strips 5 are guided towards the anvil block 134 guide tubes154 secured to the inner surfaces of the plates 100 by means of brackets152. A housing plate 156 extending between the side plates 66, 68 has asloping portion 157 which leads towards the guide tubes 154 when theparts are in the positions of FIGURE 3. The strip is thus guided from asuitable reel or other supply source towards the feed block as is bestshown in FIGURES 2 and 3.

The disclosed embodiment of the invention is provided with means forautomatically ejecting the finished splice connection from the crimpingzone. As will be explained more fully below, the crimped connector ispushed downwardly from the position of FIGURE 4 when the extension 136moves downwardly. -The connector and the portions of wire immediatelyadjacent thereto are then ejected laterally by means of a pair ofejector arms generally indicated at 158, 160. The arms 158 have notches162 on their free ends and have their inner ends 164 pivotally mountedat 166 to the housing plates 66, 68 adjacent to the guide slots 108.These arms are normally biased towards the front of the applicator, asviewed in FIGURE 2 (i.e., upwardly in FIGURES 8-10) by means of springs168 and are limited in their movement towards the front of theapplicator by pins 170 in the housing plates 66, 68. Each arm isprovided with a notch 172 between the point of engagement with the pin170 and its pivotal axis 166, these notches sloping rightwardly asviewed in FIGURE 8 towards the pivot pin 166. Arcuate leaf springs 174(see FIGURE 11) are secured to the external surfaces of the arms andhave end por- 'tions 176 which extend through the notches 172 forengagement by the previously identified pin 106.

The principle function of the arms 158 is to move the wires rearwardlyof the applicator, as viewed in FIG- URE 2, and position them on thepath of movement of the arms 160 which, in turn, function to move thewires and the crimped connector laterally. The manner in which the arm158 is actuated is as follows: In the beginning of the cycle, the partsare in the position of FIGURE 8 with the arms being biased against thepins 170 by the springs 168. When the slide assembly moves from theposition of FIGURE 3 to the position of FIG- URE 4, the pin 106 movesfrom the position of FIG- URE 8 to the position of FIGURE 9. Suchmovement of the pin 106 thus takes place because of the fact that theend portion 176 of the spring 174 can be moved aside by the pin 106 andwill snap back to its original position when the pin 106 reaches theposition of FIG- URE 9. When the slide assembly 98 returns to itsinitial position, that is, when it moves from FIGURE 4 to the positionof FIGURE 3 the pin 106 will move from the position of FIGURE 9 to theposition of FIGURE and in doing so will move against the surface of thespring extension 176. This will cause pivoting of the arm shown inFIGURES 810 in a counterclockwise direction so that the arm will moverelatively downwardly, as viewed in these figures, until the surface ofthe spring 176 is substantially parallel to the sides of the associatednotch 108. When the arm shown in these figures reaches its lowermostposition, the spring extension 176 will be permitted to pass the pin 106and the arm will move upwardly to its initial position.

The arms each have hook-shaped end portions 178 which during theoperating cycle move from the position of FIGURE 8 to the position ofFIGURE 9 and then back to their initial positions during which time theyfunction to carry the wires from the notched ends 162 of the arms 158.The arms 160 are in effect, the arms of bell crank levers 180 pivoted inthe previously identifled pin 110. The other arms of these bell cranksare pivoted at 184 to L-shaped levers 186. The lower ends of theselevers 186, as viewed in FIGURES 8-10, are pivotally mounted at 188 onthe projecting ends of the previously identified pin 124 which extendsbeyond the housing plates 66, 68.

During each operating cycle, pin 110 moves first from the position ofFIGURE 8 to the position of FIGURE 9 causing swinging of the bell cranklevers in a clockwise direction with respect to the pivotal axis 110.The upper ends 178 are thus moved beyond the wire which is beingspliced. When the pin 110 subsequently returns to its initial position,the arms 178 swing through a counterclockwise arc while they are beinglowered and pull the wire from the notches 162. The travel of these arms160 is such that the completed splices are transported beyond aretaining plate 190 extending between the housing plates which functionsto hold the completed splices away from the area in which the operatoris working.

Referring now to FIGURES 1214, the dis-closed embodiment of theinvention provides means for shearing the connector being crimped fromthe carrier strips 5 and, additionally, for fragmenting the carrierstrip as it emerges from the crimping zone. This shearing andfragmenting means comprises a pair of L-shaped levers 192 which are.pivotally mounted on pins 196 on opposite sides of the block 102. Thelevers 192 have arms 194 which extend leftwardly in FIGURE 7 so thattheir ends are disposed against the ends of the anvil block 134. Slots198 are provided on the inner sides of the arms 194 of the levers toguide the carrier strips 5 past the anvil block and relativelydownwardly, as viewed in FIGURES l2 and 13, through outlets 204 in theundersides 202 of the arms 194. The shearing and fragmenting operationsare carried out by means of slidable plates 200 disposed against theundersides 202 of the arms and movable relative to the arms from theposition of FIGURE 12 to the position of FIGURE 13. These blocks arenormally maintain-ed against the sides 202 by means of leaf springs 206which have their ends disposed against the block 200 and which havelaterally projecting ears 208 extending through notches 207 in theplates 200. The ends of the springs 206 are integral with plates 212which are secured to the block 104 by means of pins 214. A keeper 210 isalso mounted against the block 104 adjacent to each of the plates 212and has an opening at its end through which the ear 208 of theassociated spring projects. It should be added that the keepers 210 alsofunction as leaf springs and bias the arms 194 against the sides of theanvil in order to ensure shearing of the connector from the carrierstrips.

The levers 192 are normally maintained in the relative positions shownin FIGURE 7 with the slots 198 disposed substantially co-planar with theconnector supporting surfaces of the anvil block. During the operatingcycle and upon movement of the slide assembly 98 relatively towards thedie assembly, the levers 194 move against the stop blocks 84 as shown inFIGURE 13 causing the levers to be swung through a slightcounterclockwise are as is apparent from FIGURES 12 and 13. During suchmovement of the levers, the slots 198 move from their co-planarrelationship with the connector supporting surfaces of the anvil blockto affect a shearing of the insulating material of the strip on eachside of the connector that is disposed on the anvil. Such shearing ofthe insulating strip removes this leading connector from the strip whileit is being crimped onto the wires in the die assembly.

The relative movement of the levers 192 also causes the plates 200 to bemoved relatively over the outlets 204 of the slots 198 so that theprojecting portions of the carrier strips are cut off as shown in FIGURE13. This fragmenting operation disposes of the scrap carrier strip as itis produced thereby avoiding the accumulation of'long lengths of suchstrip in the working area.

To briefly review the openating cycle of the disclosed embodiment of theinvention, the parts will normally be in the positions of FIGURES 2, 3,5, and 8 at the beginning of the cycle. The operator leads the wires 4,6 which are to be spliced through the notches 1162 of the arms S, loopsthem around projections 92 of plates 90 and pulls them laterally throughthe notch 74 of the block 70. After the operator carries out thesemanipulative steps, the wires will extend drom the notches .162, throughthe slots 88, between the die sidewalls 96 and through the slot 74. Hethen act-uates a suitable control valve to admit air to the right-handside (as viewed in FIGURE 3) of the piston-cylinder 130 thus causing thepiston rod tomove outwardly relative to the cylinder as illustrated inFIGURE 4. Such movement of the piston rod 128 causes the block 164 tomove from the position of FIGURE 3 to the position of FIGURE 4 duringwhich time the previously fed connector will be severed from the stripand crimped into embracing relationship with the wires disposed betweenthe opposite surfaces of the dies. The wires are trimmed, during suchmovement of the block 104, when the extension 136 moves into the slotprovided in the center of the die assembly. The terminal strip is fedduring each operating cycle by reciprocation of the lever 144 and thefinished cri-mped connection is ejected by the movement of the ejectionarms 158, 160 as illustrated in FIGURES 8-10 and as described above.

An over-all advantage of the invention is that a splice connection canbe made between a pair of wires extending towards each other by merelylocating the wires between the surfaces of the dies and in the slot inthe die as described above. It follows that an operator can achieve ahigh production rate in making the numerous individual splices requiredto splice all of the conductors of a communications cable of the typeshown in FIG- URE 2. The operator is not required to manipulate orhandle in any way any part of the apparatus while he is making thesplices-and need only manipulate the individual conductors beingspliced.

Changes in constnuction will occur to those skilled in the art andvarious apparently different modifications and embodiments may be madewithout departing from the scope of the invention. The matter set forthin the boregoing description and accompanying drawings is offered by Wayof illustration only. The actual scope of the invention is intended tobe defined in the following claims when viewed in their properperspective against the prior art.

We claim:

:1. An applicator for applying connecting devices onto the ends ofwires, said applicator comprising, crimping die means having atransversely extending slot extending therethrough intermediate the endsthereof, an anvil and feed assembly, said anvil and feed assemblycomprising a pair of spaced apart plates, at crimping anvil secured to,and extending between said plates, shearing means on said assembly inalignment with, and movable into said slot, a feed slide between saidplates and beside said anvil, means for moving said feed slide towardsand away from said anvil to feed an uncrimp-ed connector to a positionbetween said die and anvil, and means rfor moving said anvil and feedassembly towards said die whereby the end portion of a Wire disposedbetween said die and anvil is trimmed, a connecting device is crimpedonto the trimmed end of said wire, and an uncrirnped connecting deviceis fed to a position between said die means and said anvil.

2. An applicator for applying splice-type connecting devices onto wiresextending from opposite directions towards each other, said applicatorcomprising, crimping die means having a transversely extending slotextending therethrough intermediate its ends, an anvil and feedassembly, said anvil and feed assembly comprising a pair of spaced apartplates, a crimping anvil secured to, and extending between, said plates,shearing means on said assembly in alignment with, and movable into,said slot, a feed slide between said plates and beside said anvil, meansfor moving said feed slide towards and away from said anvil to feed anuncrimped connector to a position in alignment with said die means andanvil, and means for moving said anvil and feed assembly towards saiddie whereby, upon positioning said wires with their axes extendingbetween said die and anvil and with their end portions in said slot, andupon movement of said anvil and feed assembly towards said die means,said shearing means moves into said slot to trim said wires, and aconnector positioned between said die and anvil is subsequently crirnpedonto the ends of said wires.

3. An applicator for applying splice-type connecting devices onto theends Olf wires comprising die means and anvil means, said die meanshaving trough-like lforming sunface portions for forming said connectingdevice into crimped engagement with said wires, said anvil means beingmovable relatively towards and away drom said die means, ejectingmechanism for ejecting a finished crimped connection from between saiddie and anvil comprising a first pair of arms, one of said arms beingdisposed at each end of said die, each of said first pair of arms beingmovable past said forming surfaces following movement of said anvilmeans away from said die, a second pair of a-rms disposed on each sideof said die, each of said second pair of arms being movable laterallypast said ends of said die whereby, said finished crirnped connection isfirst removed from said die cavity and is then ejected laterally frombetween said die and anvil.

4. An applicator for applying splice-type connecting devices onto wiresextending from opposite directions towards each other, said applicatorcomprising, a crimping die having a transversely extending slotintermediate its ends, an anvil and feed assembly movable relativelytowards and away from said die, said anvil and feed assembly comprisinga pair of spaced-apart plates, an anvil extending between, and securedto, said plates, a block secured to and extending between said plates,shear block means extending from said block and being in alignment withsaid slot, guide means on said plates for guiding a strip of saidconnecting devices beneath said block and between said anvil and wireshearing member, and means for moving said plates and anvil relativelytowards said die whereby upon positioning said wires between said dieand anvil "with their ends in said slot and upon movement of saidshearing member into said slot and movement of said anvil relativelytowards said die, said wires are trimmed and the trimmed ends arecrimped onto said terminal.

5. In a device for applying connecting devices to the ends of wiresextending from opposite directions towards each other, said devicecom-prising a crimping die and a crimping anvil, means for moving saiddie and anvil relatively towards each other to orirnp a connectingdevice disposed therebetween onto the ends of said wires, means forejecting crirnped connections from between said die and anvil aftercrimping comprising a first pair of wire ejecting arms, one of said armsbeing disposed on each side of said die said first arms being movable inthe direction of movement of said anvil away from said die aftercrimping of said connecting device whereby the axis of said wiresextends between said die and anvil,

9 10 a second pair of ejecting arms on each side of said die, crim-pedconnection is ejected laterally frcrn between said each of said secondpair of arms being movable laterally die and anvil.

of said direction, means for moving said first arms concomitantly withmovement of said anvil away from said die,'and means 'for moving saidsecond arms after 5 movement of said wire by said first .pair wherebysaid RICHARD H, EANES, J Primary Examiner,

No references cited.

1. AN APPLICATOR FOR APPLYING CONNECTING DEVICES ONTO THE ENDS OF WIRES,SAID APPLICATOR COMPRISING, CRIMPING DIE MEANS HAVING A TRANSVERSELYEXTENDING SLOT EXTENDING THERETHROUGH INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS THEREOF, ANANVIL AND FEED ASSEMBLY, SAID ANVIL AND FEED ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A PAIROF SPACED APART PLATES, A CRIMPING ANVIL SECURED TO, AND EXTENDINGBETWEEN SAID PLATES, A CRIMPING ANVIL SECURED ON SAID ASSEMBLY INALIGNMENT WITH, AND MOVABLE INTO SAID SLOT, A FEED SLIDE BETWEENSAIDPLATES AND BESIDE SAID ANVIL, MEANS FOR MOVING SAID FEED SLIDETOWARDS AND AWAY FROM SAID ANVIL TO FEED AN UNCRIMPED CONNECTOR TO APOSITION BETWEEN SAID DIE AND ANVIL, AND MEANS FOR MOVING SAID ANVIL ANDFEED ASSEMBLY TOWARDS SAID DIE WHEREBY THE END PORTION OF A WIREDISPOSED BETWEEN SAID DIE AND ANVIL IS TRIMMED, A CONNECTING DEVICE ISCRIMPED ONTO THE TRIMMED END OF SAID WIRE, AND A UNCRIMPED CONNECTINGDEVICE IS FED TO A POSITION BETWEEN SAID DIE MEANS AND SAID ANVIL.